Satellite TV: $30, No Monthly Bill.

After setting up a FTA satellite system, I set a challenge for myself: Just how cheaply could I set up a FTA system for Galaxy 19? Turns out the number is around $30. Of course, the secret is getting a suitable dish for free.

The dish I used was a discarded DirecTV "Slimline" dish, it's about 22" x 36". (I wouldn't try anything smaller!) You can find them on Freecycle.org, Craigs List, ebay, on your neighbor's roof, or at the dump. If you can't find a suitable dish for free or cheap, you can buy one but it will add about $50 to your total cost. Try the Winegard DS2076 76 cm Dish.

Once you've obtained a dish, the rest of the components are easily available on Amazon. Here's how we do it:

FTA Satellite, Part 3: The Equipment

In the third installment of our Free To Air (FTA) satellite series, we'll cover the equipment needed to set up a simple, one satellite system that will get you started. We'll assume that you are going to set up your system for Galaxy 19 at 97 degrees. While there is lots of programming on other satellites, Galaxy 19 has over 200 unencrypted channels available (although most are foreign language and/or religious) and it is the logical place to start.

While you can add a motor drive or use multiple LNBs to get more than one satellite, at this point we'll be focused on just a single satellite. For this, you need just 4 things: A dish, 30" or larger with mount, an "LNB" (a Low-Noise Block down converter), a receiver, and some coax cable. I would also suggest an inexpensive satellite finder to make setup much easier. 

Here's the low-down on all that you need:

FTA Satellite, Part 2: Is It For You?

FTA Satellite TV
Part 2

(Read part 1 here)

FTA satellite TV is not for everyone. But is FTA Satellite TV for you? That depends on a number of things.

Consider that you'll need to install a satellite dish at least 30" in diameter to get FTA Ku band programming - that's about 2x the size of the smallest (18") Dish Network or DirecTV dishes. Satellite dishes are covered by the FCC's OTARD regulations, which allow for the installation of satellite dishes up to 1 meter diameter (or any size in Alaska), in an area that you have "exclusive use" of. Basically, you can put a FTA dish anywhere you can put an antenna or DirecTV / Dish Network dish.

If you aren't allowed to have a satellite dish where you live, you can stop right here. Otherwise, read on to see if FTA satellite TV is something you may be interested in.